The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
2-0
Southern Illinois
1-1
Offensive Explosion Lifts Rebels Past SIU, 76-41
9/8/2018 | Football
Most Points Scored by the Rebels Since 2015
OXFORD, Miss. — Senior quarterback Jordan Ta'amu surpassed career marks in touchdowns and total yards, while the Landshark D tallied two scores in the second half to power Ole Miss to a 76-41 victory over Southern Illinois on Saturday.
Ta'amu, fresh off an explosive season-opening performance vs. Texas Tech on Sept. 1, threw five touchdown passes on 23-of-33 passing for 448 yards -- the third-most yards ever thrown by a Rebel quarterback.
However, the Rebels (2-0) ran into an effective Saluki offense that racked up 629 yards of total offense, helping Southern (1-1) to a 38-35 advantage at the break. But the Ole Miss defense permanently took back the momentum on the opening play of the fourth quarter, as Vernon Dasher picked off an errant Sam Straub (29-of-47, 382 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT) pass and returned it 88 yards for his first career score, giving the Rebels a 55-41 lead. In total, Ole Miss would close the game on a 41-3 run in the second half, which included a two-yard score by Isaiah Woullard (7 carries, 23 yards, 1 TD), a 56-yard fumble recovery by Victor Evans (4 tackles, 2.0 TFL) and a late-game one-yard scamper by backup QB Matt Corral (1-of-2, 31 yards) after the pick-six.
"I'm very happy with the half-time adjustments, outscoring them 41-3 in the second half," Ole Miss head coach Matt Luke said. "I am pleased with the energy and adjustments that we made at half time, but we obviously need to be better than that if we expect to win. So we have to get on the tape and figure out what went wrong in the first half."
At 117 points, both Ole Miss and Southern combined for the most single-game points scored in Rebel history. The Rebels' 76 points and two defensive touchdowns were the most since 2015.
"I think there are certain games where you're going to have to outscore them and that there's going to be a time this year where we're going to need our defense to step up and make some stuff to help the offense," Luke said. "So you have to figure out how to win games. But I'm very, very pleased with Jordan and the offense scoring enough points to win the game."
Four Rebels scored their first-career touchdowns, as Elijah Moore (1 rec., 50 yards, 1 TD) and Braylon Sanders (4 rec., 133 yards, 1 TD) got in on the N.W.O. fun for their first-ever Rebel touchdowns. A.J. Brown (8 rec., 158 yards, 2 TD) and D.K. Metcalf (7 rec., 93 yards, 1 TD) didn't relinquish the belt for long, though, as both racked up huge numbers on the receiving end of the career day by Ta'amu.
"Our depth at wide receiver is amazing," Ole Miss quarterback Jordan Ta'amu said. "The back-ups always have chances to showcase themselves and they did that today. I think everyone in that room is a starter."
With Ta'amu and Corral's passing yards combined, Ole Miss threw for 479 yards through the air – the second-most in Rebel history.
Ole Miss was successful on the ground as well, with Scottie Phillips passing the century mark for the second time in just his second game at Ole Miss with 107 yards and two scores.
The first half was a back-and-forth showdown between the two hot offenses, with SIU coming out swinging. The Salukis forced a three-and-out on the initial Rebel drive of the game, and proceeded to run down the field and score on a nine-yard pass from Straub to Nigel Kilby less than two minutes into the action. The Salukis ended the half on a wild 70-yard catch-and-run by receiver Raphael Leonard (6 rec., 117 yards, 2 TD), but the Rebel defense started to slow Southern in the third quarter before the eventual fourth-quarter explosion.
"We got to figure out a way to get off the field on third down," Luke said. "But again, I am pleased in the second half, getting two defensive touchdowns and battling back, so I am proud about that."
Ole Miss will remain at home next week for a pivotal primetime showdown with No. 1 Alabama at Vaught-Hemingway. Kickoff is slated for 6 p.m. CT on ESPN.
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Team Stats
SIU 7, OM 0
SIU - Kilby, Nigel 9 yd pass from Straub, Sam (Gualdoni, Nico kick) 5 plays, 56 yards, TOP 0:50
SIU 7, OM 7
OM - S. Phillips 7 yd run (Luke Logan kick), 11 plays, 65 yards, TOP 3:07
SIU 14, OM 7
SIU - Lenoir, Landon 7 yd pass from Straub, Sam (Gualdoni, Nico kick) 6 plays, 75 yards, TOP 3:25
SIU 14, OM 14
OM - Braylon Sanders 30 yd pass from Jordan Ta'amu (Luke Logan kick) 3 plays, 81 yards, TOP 0:55
SIU 21, OM 14
SIU - Straub, Sam 2 yd run (Gualdoni, Nico kick), 10 plays, 75 yards, TOP 4:30
SIU 21, OM 21
OM - Elijah Moore 50 yd pass from Jordan Ta'amu (Luke Logan kick) 4 plays, 87 yards, TOP 1:04
SIU 24, OM 21
SIU - Gualdoni, Nico 22 yd field goal 14 plays, 70 yards, TOP 6:34
SIU 24, OM 28
OM - A.J. Brown 38 yd pass from Jordan Ta'amu (Luke Logan kick) 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:32
SIU 31, OM 28
SIU - Leonard, Raphae 9 yd pass from Straub, Sam (Gualdoni, Nico kick) 6 plays, 75 yards, TOP 2:34
SIU 31, OM 35
OM - S. Phillips 6 yd run (Luke Logan kick), 10 plays, 75 yards, TOP 2:49
SIU 38, OM 35
SIU - Leonard, Raphae 70 yd pass from Straub, Sam (Gualdoni, Nico kick) 3 plays, 75 yards, TOP 0:28
SIU 38, OM 42
OM - A.J. Brown 46 yd pass from Jordan Ta'amu (Luke Logan kick) 2 plays, 59 yards, TOP 0:24
SIU 41, OM 42
SIU - Gualdoni, Nico 26 yd field goal 8 plays, 35 yards, TOP 3:02
SIU 41, OM 49
OM - D.K. Metcalf 5 yd pass from Jordan Ta'amu (Luke Logan kick) 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:12
SIU 41, OM 55
OM - Vernon Dasher 88 yd interception (Luke Logan kickfailed)
SIU 41, OM 62
OM - Isaiah Woullard 2 yd run (Isaac Way kick), 7 plays, 52 yards, TOP 1:36
SIU 41, OM 69
OM - Victor Evans 56 yd fumble recovery (Luke Logan kick)
SIU 41, OM 76
OM - Matt Corral 1 yd run (P. Nasiatka kick), 10 plays, 70 yards, TOP 5:51
